Westwood students learn the dangers of distracted driving

While operating a driving simulator, Westwood High School senior Alex Griffiths is asked to take out his cell phone and send a text message.

About five seconds later, his simulated car gets into a simulated accident, but Griffiths is clearly aware of how real the risk is.

“I was looking back and forth [at the simulator] while I was doing it [texting],” said Griffiths after completing the simulator. “It’s definitely a good way to be educated on the dangers.”

The simulation is part of a program called Distractology 101, a week-long program being held at the high school for all students with driving permits and licenses. Developed by the Arbella Insurance Foundation, the 45-minute simulation takes students on the road in a variety of situations, some in which they’re asked to use their phones while driving, and others where they drive and keep their eyes open for other vehicles and pedestrians.

“This might keep you from doing it [texting] on the road,” said Tom Moore, a junior at WHS.

Dean of Students Kathryn Ricard said the school organized the visit from Distractology following a survey in which 15 percent of 200 students in grades 10-12 said they texted while driving. Information collected through the simulator—which includes number of accidents and average speed—will be sent to UMass Amherst as part of a blind study.

“Our principal, Sean Bevan, was looking for a program to respond to the data,” said Ricard, who added that WHS works with a driving school in Norwood to provide driver’s education classes to students.

To date nearly 5,500 new drivers—those licensed less than three years or have a learner’s permit—have completed the Distractology 101 training, according to a press release sent by Arbella Insurance. In 2012, 97 percent of students surveyed said the experience was effective or extremely effective, and 82 percent said they would recommend it to a friend.

“Distracted driving is an epidemic that continues to worsen despite the public’s general awareness of its dangers,” said John Donohue, chairman, president and CEO of the Arbella Insurance Group, and chairman and president of the Arbella Insurance Foundation. “Distractology is an effective teaching tool because young drivers actually experience the feeling of a distracted driving crash scenario. They feel the shock of an unanticipated road hazard and the distress of a crash, but from the safety of the simulator. The simulation has a more lasting impact than reading about or watching a crash secondhand.”

The simulator has three screens which display a combination of city and suburban driving scenarios, including rear and side-view mirrors. After completing it, WHS senior Bella Christopherson said she didn’t even see the simulated car she hit while she was on her phone.

Senior Sophia Malonson said her mother often talks to her about the dangers of using the phone while driving, but she doesn’t hear it discussed outside of the home too often.

“It’s clearly a danger, because people drive all the time and people are so attached to their phones,” she said.